The Course Of True Love Never Does Run Smooth
by NotYetLostFaith
Summary: The course of true love never does run smoothly, but nothing worth having is easy. Tony comes home after being undercover and sees something he wishes he hadn't. What follows isn't pretty. One use of moderate language.


AUthor's Note-So I've had this saved for months and I've never really been happy with it. But today I was reading a comment on a story and realised that they were right-nine times out of ten, Tony cheats on Ziva, not the other way round. So I decided to upload this. As for Happy Endings' readers-braces suck, and I'm still ill, but I'm trying the best I can. Hopefully I shall have something by Monday, no promises though. Okay, enjoy. NYLF xx

* * *

Tony DiNozzo stood with his back to his apartment door, trying to regulate his breathing. He hadn't stopped smiling since he'd made up his mind more than an hour ago and the excitement was starting to get to him.

'Cool it DiNozzo. You need to calm down or you're never gonna do this right. It has to be perfect, just like her.' He nodded as the smile grew. His subconscious was right, she was perfect so this _had_ to be. He shook himself and cleared his throat, managing to keep the smile off his face as he slid his key into the lock and unlocked the door. "Ziva?" He walked through the small apartment, noticing that her jacket was thrown over the back of the couch and that her one of her boots was beside it while the other was next to their bedroom. "Zi?" He heard noise coming from their bedroom before he heard her laughing. As he reached the door he paused, pressing his ear to it.

"Stop!" He heard her laugh. It was only when he heard a man laughing with her that he entered the room, Sig drawn. He stopped however, just a step inside the door. His legs stopped wanting to work as he saw her in bed with Malachi."Tony." She sounded scared as she pulled the covers around herself.

"At least you had the decency to wait until I was undercover." He spat. Malachi looked from Ziva to Tony.

"I guess, I should…" Tony glared at him.

"Yeah, you should! Get dressed, get out." He practically snarled while Malachi pulled his boxers on before gathering the rest of his clothes and left the room.

"Umm, I'll call you." He murmured over his shoulder at her.

"Like hell you will!" Tony yelled, throwing his lost shoe at him as he ran out the room. "What the hell Zi?"

"Tony, stop, wait, I can explain." She rambled, reaching for her bra and snapping it back on.

"It'd better be one stellar explanation Ziva! I come home to find you in bed, in _our_ bed no less, with another guy! You know what, I don't even wanna hear it." He sighed as he walked out of the room.

"Tony, wait!" She called desperately, throwing her t-shirt and jeans back on. "Tony!"

"What Zi?" He asked angrily, turning around only when she was barely a step behind him. "You gonna tell me that what? It wasn't what it looks like? Hmm? Go on. Tell me how you weren't just laid in bed, naked, with a guy that clearly has feelings for you. Tell me how I'm making it all up, how I'm seeing things, how you weren't really fucking him!" He screamed at her.

"Tony, please." She sobbed. "This was not supposed to happen."

"What, you sleeping with him or me finding out?"

"Both." She replied quietly.

"What the hell, Ziva? I go undercover for two days and suddenly eighteen months means nothing to you?"

"Tony, you mean _everything _to me!"

"If that was true, you wouldn't have slept with him!" He spat. She covered her face with her hands as she sobbed. The urge to hold her and apologise for making her cry was dampened by the anger and pain in his heart. "I can't believe you Ziva."

"I love you!" She screamed at him. "Please, I am sorry. I did not mean for this to happen. Please, Tony." She grabbed at his hand but he pulled it away roughly. "Please."

"I'm sorry too Zi." She looked at him, hope beginning to bud in her eyes. "I'm sorry I ever trusted you." He walked away from her.

"Tony! Listen to me please. You cannot leave. I cannot do this without you. Please, do not leave me."

"If you couldn't do this without me, you wouldn't have slept with him Ziva. I loved you so damn much! I thought you felt the same." He shrugged. "I guess I was wrong." He shook his head before opening the front door.

"I love you!" She sobbed, collapsing to her knees before him. By this time, their neighbours all the way down the corridor had joined him in the hall. He took the box that he had guarded so closely out of his pocket and threw it at her.

"Go ahead! Open it!" She looked from him to the box before opening it shakily. Ziva's jaw dropped as she stared at the contents. "Yeah, Ziva. I was gonna ask you to marry me today! I loved you so damn much that I wanted to propose. Make us official! I wanted us to be forever! Now I'm not even sure if I love you."

"Do not say that please." She begged quietly. He shook his head at her.

"I'll get some one to come get my stuff." With that he took off down the hall. Ziva crossed the room in seconds and stood in the door way just in time to see him disappear down the stairs.

"But…I love you." She murmured into thin air. As if she'd only just noticed them she turned around to glare at her neighbours. "The show is over. Go home." She stated dejectedly, closing the door and sinking down it. She threw her head back against the door as tears streamed down her face. "What have I done?" She buried her face in her hands and sobbed.

* * *

"Can I come down, boss?" Tony asked, standing on the top step of the basement stairs.

"Sure, DiNozzo." Gibbs replied, already moving to pour them both a drink. "I would have thought you'd of wanted to spend tonight with Ziver. Seeing as you haven't seen her for two days." Gibbs had accepted their inevitable breaking of his rules after very little persuasion. Tony sat on the bottom step and put his head in his hands. "What happened?" He asked, standing beside his senior field agent and passed him his drink.

"I caught her…in bed…with Malachi." The word tasted bitter on his tongue even after he'd drained his drink to try and remove it. Gibbs sighed.

"Oh, God, Tony." He sat opposite him. Tony shook his head.

"I came home and heard her laughing. She sounded so happy. And then I heard him. I opened the bedroom door and they were both naked. In _our_ bed Gibbs." The tears that had threatened to spill since he'd burst in on the scene finally made their appearance. "I told her I didn't love her boss."

"Was it the truth?" Tony didn't even look up as he shook his head. "Can you forgive her?"

"I…I don't know. I want to. She…she means everything to me." Gibbs nodded. "But…she slept with someone else Gibbs. How do we come back from that?" Tony sighed. "I don't want to leave her. But I don't know if I can trust her." Gibbs embraced him as he sobbed.

* * *

Ziva hadn't moved, not even to sleep, so when the door knocked the next morning the person behind it hadn't even removed their had before she opened the door.

"Ton…Oh." She sighed dejectedly. "Good morning Abby." The young forensic scientist stood in her doorway, glaring at her.

"You slept with Malachi?" She hissed. Ziva walked into the apartment and leant against the kitchen counter.

"I do not need a lecture right now, Abby, I feel bad enough."

"No, I don't think you do." She stated, slamming the door behind her as she followed her in. "You are Tony's world and what? You just decided that you couldn't do two days apart so you slept with Malachi!" Ziva sighed as she rubbed her eyes.

"Please, Abby…"

"No, Ziva. He is torn to shreds. He doesn't know what to do with himself."

"So what, he called you?" She snapped.

"No. Gibbs did. He asked me to try and get you to come to your senses."

"I am not the one who left!"

"No! You're the one who slept with someone else!"

"Do you not think I am ashamed enough? Without you rubbing my face in it? I know that I have destroyed any hope of my and Tony's relationship. I realised that when he…! When he threw my engagement ring at me." All the anger had dropped out of her voice as she slid down the counter, head in hands. "I know how much I have hurt him. I know." Abby sat opposite the sobbing Israeli. "Nothing you can say can make me feel worse."

"McGee and Gibbs are coming to collect his stuff later. Tony doesn't want to be here, it dredges up too many bad memories."

"He hates me." Ziva sighed.

"Do you blame him?" Ziva looked to the ceiling.

"No. Of course not. I hate myself, why should he be any different. Will you tell him I really am sorry? Please? He will not listen to me." Abby looked at her.

"I'm not promising it'll make him forgive you." Ziva held up her hands.

"I know. I just…I just need him to know."

* * *

Three hours later, Ziva sat on the floor beside her front door while she watched McGee pack up Tony's things. She cried silently as her heart broke just a little more with each thing put into a box.

"Ziva? Is this yours or Tony's?" McGee asked, holding up a framed picture of them both at the beach three months ago.

"I, I do not know. Do you think he would like the reminder that I was not always the bitch that broke his heart?" McGee sighed as he placed it into the box beside him.

"Zi? Why did you do it?" He asked carefully, looking at the next picture he'd picked up; one of those cheesy couple kissing pictures, it was even in black and white. Ziva sighed.

"I…I do not know." She sounded so broken, it broke McGee's heart. "It was one stupid moment. Tony was never supposed to find out."

"You know that that was a really stupid plan right? He's a trained investigator; he would have found out eventually."

"I know." She sighed. "I know." She ran her hands through her hair to the top of her head before resting them there. "He is never going to forgive me, is he?" McGee crossed the room, knelt before her and put his arms around her.

"He loves you so much Ziva." He held tighter as she shook with the force of her sobs. "He…you'll work this out. You always do."

"I have never cheated though. I have never betrayed him like this Tim. I do not deserve him. He should have better than me."

* * *

"Here." McGee passed Tony the last box. "Last one."

"Cheers, Tim." He replied downheartedly. "How is she?"

"Broken hearted. She is so sorry Tony." Tony nodded.

"Yeah…I know."

"So, what are you gonna do?" Tony shrugged before sitting down on Gibbs' couch.

"I have no idea Tim. I love her so much but if I can't trust her…"

"She regrets what she did so badly. I can tell you now she will _never _do it again."

"Yeah, but can I trust her? If I go undercover for two days and she sleeps with someone else, what will she do if I have to go away for longer? What if this becomes a regular thing? What if…"

"You got your sorry ass off this couch and went and talked to her?" McGee interrupted. "She loves you so damn much Tony. Please don't throw this away! Don't throw away the best thing that has ever happened to you. I'm…I'm scared." McGee admitted quietly.

"Why are you scared?" Tony asked slowly.

"Because the last time you two fought like this she ended up in that godforsaken desert. She nearly died the last time and I can't lose her. She's like my sister. I cannot lose her, not again. Just…just go talk to her. Please."

* * *

Ziva barely had the energy to drag herself off the couch to answer the door, hours later. She was so tired, but she was dammed if she'd go and lie in that bed. She didn't even bother checking the peep hole.

"Tony?" She took a step back, suddenly not at all tired but slightly fearful of the look in his eyes.

"Why'd you do it?" He pushed past her and walked into the apartment and started pacing. Ziva closed the door slowly.

"Why do we need to…?"

"I need to know why you did it Zi." She took a deep breath.

"I just needed to know." She murmured.

"Know what?"

"That no one else made me feel the way you do. I needed to see that I loved you more than anyone else. I needed to be able to trust my own heart. We were getting so serious and I…I guess I was scared. I needed to make sure…" She drifted off as she looked at the floor, letting the tears flow freely. "I am so sorry Tony. I know…I know you can never forgive me. I know you will never trust me again. But I miss you so much. I need you in my life Tony. I cannot do this without you. I love you so much. Please, please, do not make me do this alone." She was sobbing by the end of her speech and Tony stopped pacing in favour of watching her. She had slipped onto the floor at some point and was now sobbing into her hands.

"Can you honestly promise me that you will never need to…check…again?" He asked shakily. She looked up at him, shocked by the question.

"No." She shrugged regretfully. "But I can promise that I will talk to you when I need to. I can promise I will not run and hide. I can promise that I will always love you."

"Okay."

"Okay?" Hope was budding in her eyes, voice and heart.

"If you can promise me, one hundred percent, that you will talk to me and never go to someone else's arms to check your feelings, then…" He crossed the room, pulled her up and embraced her tightly. "I can't do this without you either baby." The couple sobbed, sat in their hallway, for longer than either was counting. That night, Tony took Ziva into his arms as she took him into her body as they reaffirmed their love for each other, and only each other.

* * *

Three years later the couple were married, this episode long behind them; much to the gladness of their friends. Ziva did question her feelings, her judgement, on many an occasion, but always kept her promise. She always fell into Tony's arms and they found their way through it every time. The course of true love never does run smoothly, but nothing worth having is easy.


End file.
